Looking Back and Looking Forward

Happy Curator Appreciation Day!

Last Saturday, Feb. 16, the folks at Cornwall Iron Furnace helped kick off Lebanon County’s bicentennial celebration by staffing a booth at the Lebanon Valley Expo Center. Modeled after the 1913 centennial program, Saturday’s well-attended event featured historical info and music, but also included 118 community organizations from around the county. As part of the year-long commemoration of the county’s founding, Cornwall Iron Furnace is organizing a tour of historic Cornwall for Saturday, Oct. 5. [I had the wrong date when this was first posted; Oct. 6 is the raindate for the tour.] To read more about Saturday’s festivities, go here. You can also catch a glimpse of the Cornwall gang near the beginning of this clip from WGAL’s tv coverage.

View of the Delaware River from inside the Visitor Center at Washington Crossing

There’s a lot to look forward to at Washington Crossing Historic Park and lots of people ready to do some looking. A ceremony is planned for Charter Day, March 10, as the newly renovated Visitor Center opens to the public and the rest of the site emerges from its winter schedule. (Work is also gearing up for the orientation exhibit that will be installed in the new building, exploring the 1776 Christmas night crossing and the events surrounding it.) Looking further out, PHMC has engaged Marianna Thomas Architects of Philadelphia to develop a master plan for Washington Crossing, evaluating the park’s resources and charting a course for its long-term health and sustainability. Community and other stakeholders will be included in the process, which is expected to take place this spring and early summer. You can read more about the details here.

And speaking of Charter Day, don’t forget that the other Trails of History sites (with a couple of exceptions) will be open free of charge on March 10 for our annual tribute to Pennsylvania's birthday. Watch for more info on that in next week’s post. Until then, have a great weekend and enjoy the final bits of February.